Devotion
by callmeincognito
Summary: Ava has just been hired as an Intern at Bottlehem LLC, an upcoming and successful translation firm in downtown London. While she saw this as nothing more than business, or perhaps a great opportunity for a resume builder, fate seems to have more in store than Ava asked for. (A tom Hiddleston fanfic)
1. Chapter 1

Haha, so remember when I said i wouldn't be writing anymore...here I am! Life is too boring and I just couldn't stay away! I'll hopefully be sticking to my old content but ill be adding some new things, this being one of them! Let me know what you think and always send me a message for suggestions, comments, or just if you need someone to talk to. Enjoy! (: _**note ended. **_

After what feels like years of waiting and filling out endless visas and work forms; I'm finally here. I'd always wanted to leave home, and knew I would, but to think it's _now_, no longer a daydream or apprehensive wish, but my tangible reality. The air feels dryer, people busier, but the sounds matter little as the only thing filling my ears are the melodic rhythms of whatever Spotify _morning shuffle_ has chosen to provide. London, which is to be my new home for the next year, already felt just like that, home. Eight months ago I applied for an overseas internship for University business students, and although my university offered partnership programs, all of them were unpaid. Which meant two things for me: one, I'd have to work harder to find a paid internship, and two, I'd be working for a larger corporation. Which happens upon how I'm here, in the underground, hanging onto a poll no doubt filled with thousands of micro-organisms, thinking to myself all the things I should _not_ say on my first day. '_Well you're American, so don't be a cliché and overly talk about yourself, it'll be expected'_ it seemed too early for my subconscious to be nagging me, but here we are, defying all odds. But before any other intrusive thoughts could disrupt the morning, the underground comes to a halting stop, and my focus now shifts to finding my way off the train as quick as possible.

Bottlehem _LLC. _was a small three-story modern _art deco_ building, and I say small in comparison to all the massive downtown skyscrapers surrounding. Inside were various workspaces, lights, and desks, all with people talking, drawing, and typing on laptops. And before I had the chance to question where I should go a woman with auburn hair and a white blouse was smiling and holding her hand out, "Hello, you must be Ava! I'm Audrey, you'll usually see me at the front desk, but I'm going to get your badge and give you a quick tour of the building. Mr. Bottlehem is out of the office, but he sends his apologies. I'll be taking you to your project manager and he'll get you adjusted with the rest." _This is the point where Audrey began walking and talking_, "His name is Thomas," – _she now handed me a badge and_ _folder_ – "You'll love him, I don't think there's a single person in the office who doesn't." – _we now began up the stairway staying to the right _– " But once you meet him, Thomas will give you the tour of the rest of the building and answer any other questions you have. I'm so excited you're going to be –" But as we turned the corner, anything Audrey _could_ or _would _have said ceased to touch my ears. There was a man, a beautifully tall and eloquent man, thinking to himself while writing on what looked to be a whiteboard. Yet, before I had the chance to longingly wish I could meet his gaze just once, we we're turning the corner and I had not heard a single word that came out of Audrey's mouth in the last 20 seconds. "Is that a no?" Audrey looked back, and that was my cue that I truly hadn't been paying attention when I should have been. "I'm sorry, could you say that one more time?" she laughed ardently, seemingly unphased. "I just asked if you've enjoyed London so far." After a few more seconds of walking we concluded our journey. "I have, yes. Though I do have to admit that I still can't convince myself to like English breakfast tea, and it taste even more ghastly with milk. But I do think earl grey is rather great!"

"What a pity," But before I could question who, a face appeared in my peripheral to match the voice. It was _him_. "English breakfast tea with a bit of cream and sugar happens to be my favorite." As if knowing the thousands of thoughts running through my head, Audrey smiled. "This is Thomas Hiddleston, project manager over all classical translation and exchange."


	2. Chapter 2

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Hiddleston." I placed my hand inside his, meeting his firm handshake. I'd like to say that my face wasn't red, but I couldn't even convince myself of that lie. "Please, the formalities aren't needed, just call me Tomas." His hands were warm, as if seconds before he'd been clutching them in thought. "Then, it's nice to meet you Thomas." He smiled, a soft grin upon his face as our hands slid apart. "Forgive me, I just received your file today, could you remind me your name once more?" I swallowed harder than necessary, definitely nerves but I'd hope neither of them noticed. "Ava." There was a pause, and Audrey took the brief moment of silence to say her goodbyes. To my dismay, she could _definitely _tell there was something working in my mind, what the exact thing was though, I don't think she had quite cracked. "Well, now that you two are acquainted, I'll be off to my desk. Thomas will give you a formal tour of the building and be your first reference for any questions you might have. I'll contact you when Mr. Bottlehem is back in town and schedule your meeting with him. In the meantime, if you need me, you know where to find me. And again, congratulations, we're so glad you're here with us."

After Audrey left, it was almost instantaneously Thomas continued the conversation. "Truly, forgive me, If I had more than ten minutes this morning to look over your file I would have been greeting you the minute you walked in. Fortunately though, I've been graced with your presence in the time I needed it the most. We're working on a translation restoration program with the public library, to make a topic such as classical studies a focus of interest for the younger generation. It's a bit out of the park compared to our normal work, but where would the excitement be if every day were the same. And I have everyone on my team call me Tom, Thomas is too formal for my liking, don't want to feel as if I'm at dinner with my mother." He let out a soft laugh, the corners of his mouth turning up and he looked down ever so slightly, running his hands through his tousled hair.

_Tom. _I couldn't accept myself to come to terms with how I was feeling; perhaps admiration, excitement, _awe_? No, It was _desire, salacity,_ _utter bewilderment _for how this man, a man who I had only known for three minutes, had made me wish I could hear him talk till the end of time. He spoke like he cared, not because he had to, or because someone paid him to care, but because he loves what he does. "Then _Tom_," I smiled before continuing, unconsciously looking up to meet his blue-eyed gaze. "If you don't mind me asking, how did classical languages become your field of management?" He smiled, not the soft smile given earlier, but one of excitement, almost like a kid on Christmas day. "No I don't mind you asking at all, I'm getting ahead of myself but we'll be working quite closely so I'd also like to know the person who will be my accomplice the next year. I won't call you my intern because the word _intern _often implies you listen and do as I say, and while I'd hope my directions might be helpful, I want you to get the most out of your experience. To be clear, what I mean by that is making decisions as a partner and voicing your own expressive thoughts free of judgement. Ah, I digress. My degree was in classics at Cambridge, so I studied classical languages, literature, and art. But instead of becoming a professor, I wanted to find a way to expressively share the beauty of classics and art with others. And now I find myself in the most fortunate position of being head of all classical affairs at this fine company." Did he just say working closely with him for the _next year_? I assumed my time would be spent with some middle aged know it all undermining my every thought or some pretentious twenty-five-year-old man-splainer but _him_. _Tom. _I have to stop while I'm ahead, but I can't find a single flaw within this man. He's kind, soft-spoken, but firm when he needs to be. Just by the brief interaction I can tell people respect him, oh _please _let him be an asshole, I beg to any omnipotent force that can hear me. Call me crazy, but it would be more tolerable to put up with an asshole than someone who's that perfect. _Please let there be something wrong with him_, I mean _Cambridge _for crying out loud. "That's amazing!" I had to make sure I sounded interested, but not _too_ interested, which I was undoubtably. But I couldn't let him know that. Not yet, anyway. I couldn't be the ditsy intern who's fawning over her boss the first day, I had to at least give it a week. "Although classical anthropology is my minor, not my major, I'm glad I didn't get put with a modern language. It's not very often I get to do work with this side of my degree so I'm more than excited to do any and everything." He gave that same smile again, then started walking. "I'm grateful for your enthusiasm, because we're going to need it. Let's get along with the tour, shall we?"

Forty five minutes later and we were back where we had started. "I know that was quite a lot, but any questions?" All that I had gathered from that tour was that: the office has a wide variety of coffees, espressos, and teas, _how British. _The first floor was used as a collaborative space, teams could get a change of scenery, talk with other departments, or just a coffee break, and of course that's where the secretary's stayed as well. The second floor was the classics department, third was the southern regions, Spanish and Italian, fourth was German and Dutch, and fifth was the marketing and management team. But more importantly what I noticed is how many glances tom got from women around the office, or how many people stopped just to have conversation with him, _or how perfectly_ _his shirt hugged his body_. "I think you covered everything perfectly. If anything comes to mind I'll let you know." And with that, we began work.

The rest of the day was spent with Thomas explaining to me the drafts and action plan of the translation restoration program. "So essentially, were going to need a draft of action in the next few weeks, weekly meetings with the appointed library liaison, daily meetings with your teams to make sure everyone is up to date on their respective tasks, and to simultaneously approve each of their submission drafts to which correlative to those independent respective tasks?" If my head wasn't melting before his very eyes, I'd be surprised. He laughed before speaking, "Don't panic, most of these are usually what I do, besides the partnership. But, that's why you're here, to assist me through this project and have a wonderful achievement under your belt."

If you can believe it, the next month was even more of a haze than the first day. By now, I had managed to remember where the bathroom was, the coffee station, and that was about it. On top of my great list of accomplishments, _sarcasm_; I had managed to make a few friends within the classics department. Elizabeth, who had been working there for two years, was hilarious, and liked to tell me the '_official' _way to do things and then the '_Elizabeth_' way of doing things. I appreciated her honesty in times of confusion, which was almost all times, as all anyone ever wanted to tell me was the in adverted and overly complicated official procedure. Theodore was also a companion who I considered myself close to after the last few weeks. He had only been here for six months, but knew his way around the place like he'd been here for years. Theodore did have a tendency to overstress himself, which could be incredibly infectious. Yet, he listened well, offered a tenacious insistence on giving helpful advice, and that's more comfort than most people offered. There were of course others around and within other departments: Eliza, who liked peanut butter, Almira, who always smelt of cherry, and Corrigan who never missed tea at ten.

And of course, there was _him. _I told myself I wouldn't, that I couldn't, and yet I did anyway. There was never a morning I struggled to get out of bed, to find reason not to be excited. I wake up contemplating, _if I wore a new skirt would he notice? _I think on the subway of how long I should let the tea bag steep. I always let it sit the same time, three minutes. I close my eyes and can feel the endorphins flowing through my body when he smiles, seeing I hold a cup in my hand like every morning. Occasionally he still says, "You know, you don't have to." And I smile back and say, "I know, but I want to." It's like clockwork; a masterpiece I can paint in my mind anytime. I anticipate seeing him in thought, his hands interlacing, eyebrows furrowing. To hear him laugh when I make a mediocre joke, his mouth widening and teeth shinning. It's ridiculous, inappropriate even, but I can't help it. It doesn't make it easier that my office is inside his, so besides leaving, he is my consistent companion. I wonder if he notices sometimes, I hold eye contact longer than I should, or that after our sidetracked conversations it always takes me a minute to continue working because I spend the next thirty seconds thinking the conversation over. I always notice when he's woken up late by the way his hair falls, there's always one strand that goes left rather than right, and when he's late, he forgets to pay detail to that strand. He always listens, and I don't mean the way most British people do where they listen just to speak. Even when I take so long to get to the point I forget why I started the conversation, he still holds my gaze attentive as ever.

"I hope you don't have any plans tonight." Tom says with a wide grin as I hand him his morning tea. _Did he just say that?_ I can't assume anything and get my hopes up. I'm probably getting the complete wrong idea. Am I making myself too available by saying I don't? Oh, but that's arrogant of me to say I do when I don't. _What if I pass up an opportunity?_ "And if I did happen to have plans?" Suggestive but playful. "Then I think you would be sad considering tonight is the annual classics department 'fuck it' night." _I _would be sad, not _him_? All I could do is raise an eyebrow; I have no earthly idea what this man could be talking about. "The last Wednesday of the month the department gets together at a pub down the street and everyone gets completely wasted, a form of team bonding outside work, something to look forward to, and a great stress reliever. I just couldn't exactly tell you that in your orientation," Truthfully, the idea was a bit intimidating, but perhaps liquid courage could be what I needed. I pretended to give it a second of thought, as to not immediately answer and make myself look utterly desperate. "_But_ if you have better things to do I suppose I'll have to suffice without you." _He'll have to suffice without me? _I could feel myself turning red. "I presume I can't refuse the offer, after all who's going to make you the cup of hydrating tea when you need it?" And with that, I left before he got the satisfaction of seeing the entirety of my body turn red before his eyes.

I _had_ to be overthinking things, there was no possible way a sliver of my wildest imaginations could be true. He could never, and doesn't like me. Yet the curiosity was eating me alive, I had to consult the person I knew would tell me the truth, even if I didn't want to hear it, Elizabeth. She was deep in thought, but I bothered her anyway, knowing the scowl I would get for putting an issue of such minute importance at priory. "Ava! Always good to see you, tom send you for something?" His name just makes me sweat. My breath hitched and I stuttered on my words before I could speak. "No, actually. I came here just to ask you a few questions, about Thomas actually." She tilted her head then lowered her voice, looking to the side before speaking. "Is everything alright?" I laughed to ease the tension, "Oh no! nothing of that sort! I do appreciate your concern though. No, it's more…well when he addresses you, and talks with you, and jokes…how does he address you?" She still looked puzzled, the gears in her head not quite understanding what I was asking for. "I mean…He's just Thomas. the usual "_yes! That bit there."_ and "great work Beth!" is that what you're asking?" I hesitated, forming my words carefully, as I couldn't help but to anticipate an egregious response from what she would only assume. "Yes, but not quite. When he jokes, how does he respond?" Elizabeth's eyebrows were now furrowing together, but unlike Thomas, Elizabeth's were not in thought but rather frustration. "I don't know…by laughing? Ava what are you asking." Her last sentence was a command rather than a question, I knew she was trying to be patient, but she had little of it for people who were not frank. I decided not to say anything more in fear of opening a discussion I was not ready to have. "I was just pointing out to Thomas he has a habit of addressing people personally. Things like 'It would make _me_ so sad..' and just personal addresses." Elizabeth looked to the side then hesitated on her words, "You mean like addressing people in first person?" I felt like a complete idiot, of course I was overlooking things. I laughed again to play off my embarrassment, "You know, yes, that. I think it's time for another cup of coffee."

By the end of the day I had shadowed Thomas in reviewing at least 10 different translations and my brain had reached capacity. All I yearned for was mindless entertainment. "I think it's about my turn to get tea, and you look like you could use a cup." My fully operational brain would jump at the opportunity to overanalyze. He's_ getting you coffee?_ But the brain I currently hold could only muster, "Thanks." In the middle of one of my hypnic jerks that had continually taken place In his absence, Tom walked in. How could I tell he walked in if I couldn't keep my eyes open? I heard it before I saw it, a wide mouthed laugh. It was enough to jerk my head up and once again turn me red. I was mortified, yes he was like a friend but he was also my boss. Would he be angry at me for dozing off? "I'm going to invest in a sleeping pod, just for you. Maybe I'll keep a spare pillow in my desk as well?" I gave a sideward glance, It felt too personal to roll my eyes. My hand slid to the outside of his, taking the cup from his hand. "I wouldn't complain if you did."

I held a weight of anticipation in the bottom of my stomach as the hours approached to the day ending. I couldn't let myself get loose, not around him, not when there's so much I want to say. I'm making a vow to myself; I will stick by those words. The only thing that stops me from telling him everything I consistently think, is myself, and if I allow myself to forget I'm a barrier, _then there are none. _


End file.
